With an increasing number of students enrolling into Australian universities, developing an understanding of the variables underlying academic success, is growing in importance. In the present study, three first-year cohorts (2013-2015) studying towards five allied health or science degrees (n = 1,676 students) were examined to ascertain the impact of students' entrance pathways and demographic background on academic performance and retention. Results identified gender and the Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank as significant predictors of academic performance, with female students (p < 0.05) and students entering with the highest quartile of Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank score (p < 0.001) performing strongest. Results also revealed that students from government secondary schools performed significantly higher in terms of first year grade point average (p < 0.05) compared with students from non-government schools and that secondary school tuition fees correlated positively with ATAR score but negatively with first year GPA (p < 0.05). The findings from this study have implications in the formulation of education policy, particularly highlighting the strength of students from government schools transitioning to university science and allied health degrees.